Trend from 2008: Amazon Had "Best Ever" Sales

While everyone else has been struggling, Amazon.com has reported their "best ever" holiday shopping season. Compared to the doom and gloom from companies such as Tweeter and Circuit City, Amazon's report is a shining light of good news.

Last year, 5.4 million products were ordered on its peak day. This year, that number grew to 6.3 million products, ordered on December 15. During the holiday shopping season, retailers typically make between 30-50% of their annual revenue. Amazon is lucky -- few retailers saw those numbers this year.

What were some of the bestsellers?

According to Amazon, the Nintendo Wii, Samsung's 52-inch LCD HDTV and Apple's iPod touch were on their bestsellers list.

What could have caused this boom? Fewer shopping days between Thanksgiving and Christmas, lousy weather, and perhaps, general lack of trust that your local retailer will be around if you have a problem with your purchase.